The Future is Bright with TEX+
In a stirring celebration of the UK's brightest emerging textile designers, TEX+ 2025 opened its doors this summer with a bold declaration from Lidewij Edelkoort: “The future is incredibly bright.” Returning to London for her first public appearance in several years, the revered trend forecaster launched the showcase with a keynote address that was as visionary as it was hopeful.
Zandra Rhodes, Orla Kiely and TEX+ trustees. Image Source: Tex+
Hosted at the Triangle Building, Chelsea College of Arts, TEX+ 2025 gathered together a powerful constellation of industry icons - Orla Kiely, Zandra Rhodes, Mary-Ann Dunkley of Liberty Fabrics - to honour 25 exceptional graduates from across the UK. Representing leading institutions from Central Saint Martins to the Royal School of Needlework, these designers are redefining what textiles can do - and what textile designers can be.
Formerly known as Texprint, TEX+ has long been a launchpad for textile stars. Its alumni network boasts big names like Margo Selby, Emma J Shipley, and countless others now at the helm of studios or leading innovation for Chanel, Nike and Liberty. But with its new charitable status, TEX+ is looking beyond prestige, aiming to build a community that nurtures talent with deep, ongoing support - mentorship, placements, professional development, and a vital sense of belonging.
This year’s winners showed remarkable range:
Beth Lingard (above) (Leeds Arts University) scooped the Sanderson Art in Industry Prize, the Sahara Prize, and The Pattern Cloud Prize for her printed textile collection 'Dusk till Dawn', inspired by a dreamlike transition into an otherworldly jungle.
Esme Whitton (above) (UWE Bristol), will gain archive access and mentoring through the Liberty Fabrics Studio Prize for her printed textiles inspired by the story 'The Yellow Wallpaper' by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1982).
Amber Fry (above) (Central Saint Martins) was recognised for both sustainability and artistry, receiving the Trustees’ Prize for Sustainability & Ethical Practice as well as the Mary Restieaux Prize for 'Plot 24' - a 100% naturally dyed, 100% British wool collection of handwoven textiles.
Winnie Sowter (above) (Edinburgh College of Arts) was awarded the £1,000 Helga Goldman Prize for Innovation & Creativity for Tactile Connections, a mixed media community-led textile project exploring the power of touch in supporting emotional well-being.
Severina Seidl (above) (Royal School of Needlework) won the Trustees’ Prize for Technical Excellence for 'Maleficium', a hand embroidered collection exploring themes of despair and hope, inspired by Krabat, the novel by German author Otfried Preußler.
The Pentland Prize went to Yingruo Cao (above) (London College of Fashion) for 'Sunburn Mademoiselle', an exploration in knitted form of feminine expectations rooted in traditional Asian culture, and Aidan Morris (below) (Glasgow School of Art) whose print collection 'error 404' explores distortion within the real world through reflection, refraction, and repetition, drawing inspiration from digital glitches. Both have earned paid design placements.
Asha Vine (below) (Arts University Bournemouth) received the Bay & Brown Prize, including a floral print course and portfolio session, for her colourful and dynamic mixed media printed textile collection.
Together, these winners represent a dynamic cross-section of the UK’s next textile vanguard. They were considered by the judges to be audacious in their approaches to materials, sustainability, storytelling, and craft, and Edelkoort described them as a generation “not just dreaming of change, but designing it.” Whether challenging fast fashion with slow processes, pushing the boundaries of bio-based materials, or reviving endangered techniques with contemporary purpose, this cohort is asking - and answering - urgent questions.
With support from brands like Pentland, Liberty, and The Pattern Cloud, the TEX+ programme has become a bridge that connects the rigour of education with the unpredictable demands of the textile industry. It offers real pathways for designer-makers at a moment when their voices are more needed than ever.
As TEX+ Chair Jeremy Somers put it: “These designers are tackling some of the most urgent conversations in design today – from sustainability to identity, from storytelling to innovation.” With its eyes firmly on the future and its roots deep in craft, TEX+ proves once again that British textile design is not just surviving - it’s leading.
The future? It’s textured, ethical, and dazzlingly bright.
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Image Credits:
Lead Image: Winnie Sowter, Mixed Media Installation/Sculpture. Photo by Hope Holmes